— Bubba the Love Sponge is said to be the least popular person in the TNA locker room. Those who look past his shock jock personality say he gives off a vibe that he’s above everyone else due to his friendship with Hulk Hogan.

— Alex Shelley, who is suffering from a few herniated and bulging discs, is expected to continue working through said injuries. There was some initial concern that the Motor City Machinegun member would be out for an extended period of time.

— One former Russo defender laughed over some of the “absurd” things the TNA creative director has written in his online blogs, quipping, “He’s really showing how smart he isn’t.”

(credit to the Pro Wrestling Torch for the information used in this report)

— Reigning TNA Women’s Knockout Champion Tara confirmed on her Twitter account that she did indeed have a wardrobe malfunction during Thursday’s iMPACT! broadcast.

She wrote: “Just got back from tour. I just woke up and missed game. Blurred top from Thursday show was from wardrobe malfunction. Whoops! TNA was nice enough to keep it classy and blur out my malfunction. My parents would have been upset. Torrie Wilson was the first to call me.”

She also noted suffering a chipped tooth working against ODB over the weekend.

— Mick Foley has posted a new blog on the official TNA website discussing, among other topics, his work helping to raise money for the Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame at their annual dinner on Feb. 20 in New Jersey.

Source: Pro Wrestling Torch

– There was some eye rolling in the TNA locker room when Hulk Hogan and The Nasty Boys had a laugh at the expense of X Division star Jay Lethal. Jerry Sags openly questioned how long TNA will keep him employed and laughed at the audacity of his “Black Machismo” character. Apparently in a tongue in cheek tone, Hogan later cracked during an appearance on The Bubba The Love Sponge Show that TNA should bring in Randy Savage to manage Lethal.

– TNA officials have spoken to the Mexican-based AAA promotion about sending Hernandez for an extended stay. While this idea has come up in the past, there are some who feel he could become a legitimate star in Mexico. On the other hand, others fear Mexican wrestling fans could turn on him once they discover that he doesn’t speak Spanish particularly well. For those curious, Hernandez is of Mexican and Puerto Rican descent.

On his Facebook account, Bret Hart made some interesting comments regarding TNA. He wrote the following:

“It was nice seeing Jeremy Borash, a longtime friend of mine, from TNA while I was in Nashville. He hung out with me and we never once talked wrestling. Some feeble minded idiot who saw us in plain view tried to start the rumour that I might be heading to TNA next; although why anyone would ever think I’d let Hogan and Bischoff anywhere near my Hitman persona again is truly beyond me.”

Bischoff referred to Borash as a “mark” last week on his Twitter account for posting a photo of himself and Hart after their dinner, which also included several other TNA staffers.

You can see the picture of Borash with Bret Hart (and follow 80+ wrestlers & divas on Twitter) at PWTweets.com.

— Hulk Hogan was asked to give his Super Bowl predictions as part of Scripps Howard’s annual celebrity list.

In Hogan’s trademark wording, he said the following: “New Orleans, 35-6. New Orleans has an amazing new energy this year, both as a team and a city. They survived Hurricane Katrina, and if they could survive that, they can survive anything.”

Likewise, Bret Hart made the following prediction on his Facebook account: “Anyhow, as for the Super Bowl on Sunday between the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints, I’ve decided after great deliberation to pull for the Saints but I think Manning will pull it out of the fire. Most importantly, I hope it’s close anyway.”

— Via online voting, former WWE Diva Jackie Gayda-Haas (a/k/a Miss Jackie) is in the running to determine the new Status Fitness magazine cover model. You can vote for Haas at the following link.

— As noted earlier, Awesome Kong requested her release from TNA following her one-sided physical encounter with shock jock Bubba the Love Sponge backstage at a recent television taping. She has been telling friends that officials refused to grant her release from the organization. She countered by telling management that she would not be appearing on the UK tour despite being advertised. However, she did give into working a match the night following her altercation with Bubba. Furthermore, the issue between Kong and Bubba has apparently been resolved following a meeting between her, Hulk Hogan, and Eric Bischoff, though some internally feel it wouldn’t be too surprising to see it turned into a storyline if and when she returns.

It should be noted that much of the lingering heat between Kong and TNA is said to be over a financial dispute. She is especially touchy when she notices the company spending frivolously on newcomers while also claiming that they can’t afford to give raises to her and her fellow Knockouts. The assumption within the company is that Tara and perhaps Christy Hemme are paid well due to their past history with World Wrestling Entertainment, but there is much frustration over the pay that the other females receive.

— TNA will be running live events in Georgia and Alabama during WrestleMania weekend instead of holding shows in Phoenix, which was speculated after dates for that weekend in Canada were recently canceled. They will be in Ozark, Alabama on Mar. 25 and Columbus, Georgia on Mar. 26.

— The TNA website is running a poll asking which newcomer will have the most success in 2010. Generation Me are winning the poll with 34% of the vote. They are trailed by Brian Kendrick (22%), Hamada (12%), Orlando Jordan (12%), Rob Terry (11%) and Lacey Von Erich (10%).

(Credit to prowrestling.net for the information used in this report)